Women's surfing gets too sexy as competitors judged on looks more than skill

WHAT A CHEEK: Alana Blanchard surfs in skimpy attire. Source: Supplied

WOMEN'S surfing is caught deep in the barrel - it's becoming too sexy for its own good.

(By Paul Weston, The Sunday Mail) - In the post-Layne Beachley era, the new girls on boards are increasingly being judged on their looks and searched for on Google for bikini shots as much as tennis star Anna Kournikova at her peak.

As magazines rate "the 10 hottest female surfing stars", blokey bloggers even speculate that some of the teenagers have shot up in the ratings as their bikinis get smaller.

Los Angeles-based surfer Anastasia Ashley cops the most criticism, with one blogger saying: "Anastasia is my favorite hands down for looks. Her talent? She still needs to live up to her hype."

Ask the members of the young male gallery who is their favorite surfer and they will nominate pipeline winner Alana Blanchard, who is never shy of modeling a G-string.